Stronger Than You
by MondayFriday
Summary: Steven and The Crystal Gems are here to save the day. Between fighting to protect their home and trying to figure out what Homeworld is up to Steven comes across several cluster gems. What will he find? What will he learn? What will he be told?
1. Chapter 1

_**We… are the Crystal Gems,  
We'll always save the day,  
And if you think we can't, we'll always find a way.  
That's why the people of this world,  
Believe in,  
Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl…  
And Steven!**_

"Wow it's so sunny today!" Steven said looking out his bedroom window. As he ran down the steps he noticed Pearland Amethyst fighting over Amethyst putting peanut butter in the ice tray.  
"I wanted to see what would happen!" Amethyst yelled.  
"A mess! That's what happened!" Pearl hollered, pointing to the freezer that was covered in overturned peanut butter.  
"If it's such a big mess YOU clean it!" Amethyst picked up the half-filled tray of frozen peanut butter and threw it between the two angered gems before running to her room in a huff.  
"Honestly…" Pearl said grabbing a broom and sweeping the mess into a dust pan.  
"Pearl," Steven said walking over to the angry gem who was muttering to herself "is Garnet okay? I mean, she's been pretty upset since the other day." Steven cupped his hands together. A sorrowful tone pressed to his voice.  
"You're right Steven. I'm not cleaning this mess for once! This time Amethyst is going to clean it up or… or…" Pearls shoulders shuddered as she threw the broom on the floor. "It'll stay a mess!" Pearl trotted to her door, nose in air.  
"Wait, Pearl!" Steven tried to yell but Pearl was long since gone. "Huh…" Steven sighed, "I guess it's up to me." Steven put on a brave face and walked to the warp pad. "I'm gonna help Garnet if it's the last thing I do." Steven smiled as the warp pad warped him to the bubble room.

Walking through the bubble room, Steven noticed a broken black triangle. "I think I've seen this one before…" Steven said, breaking it off from the other gems it was attached to. Steven searched the room and noticed another intact black triangle. "There it is!" He said walking over to the bubble and ripped it off the other gems. "There you are!" Steven smiled at the gem; a small light went unnoticed as Steven brought the broken gem back to his room.  
"Well, you're gonna be here a while. So I'm gonna tell you everything I know." Steven propped the broken gem on a pillow. "I'm Steven and I'm a Crystal Gem. We protect earth and stuff. You know no biggie." He smiled from ear to ear before looking at the gem before him.  
"It must be lonely being stuck in your gem… are you okay in there?" Steven looked at the gem before licking his hand placing the two pieces together.  
"Did it work?" Steven looked at the gem; still broken.  
"Huh, Garnet's the strong one, Amethyst's is the fun one, Pearl is the smart one… I guess I'm the useless gem." Steven put the gem on a pillow and fell asleep.

As a dark black light shined through Steven's room, a thud woke him. "What's that? Who's there?" Steven said curling up under the covers, his eyes the only thing visible.

A tall curvy woman stood before him. Short black hair curved into a bob just below her ears, dark brown skin, big pouty lips and prominent eyelashes over one eye, the other eye was her gem and was quickly covered with an eyepatch. She had several rows of black stud earrings in one ear and only one off white one in the other. A grey fur covered coat, black bandeau top, black wrapped pants, and bulky grey boots.  
"Whoa, where… what is this… child… whom might you be?" The woman said inspecting her new body.  
"I-I'm… Steven…who are you?" Steven yelled amazed and terrified. The woman smiled a sorrowful smile.  
"Hello Steven, I'm Onyx."


	2. Chapter 2: Bad

_**I could show you how to be strong,  
in the real way.  
and I know that we can be strong,  
in the real way,  
and I want to inspire you,  
I want to be your rock and when I talk it lights a fire in you,  
I want to inspire you.**_

"So… you're Onyx?" Steven said crawling from underneath his covers. He stared at the tall woman who was now frantically pacing.  
"Yes! I'm… where… you are with the rebellion?" she asked rubbing her hands as Steven nodded quickly.  
"So you must know! Where are the others!?" She lunged towards Steven and gripped his shirt collar.  
"Get your hands off him!" Garnet appeared as she smashed Onyx into the ground, shattering Steven's staircase. Amethyst and Pearl ran out of their rooms, weapons in hand as Onyx summoned her circle blade from her gem.  
"Pearl! Where are the others?! Where's Rose? Where's Scolecite?! Who are these…" Onyx searched Pearl's eyes for answers.  
"Garnet… what do we do?" Pearl stared at Garnet who was prepared to fight.  
"Garnet? Ruby… Sapphire… fusion?" Onyx lowered her weapon. "Please, if you are this way you must understand. Ru- I mean, Garnet, I need to find Scolecite."  
"Onyx… the rebellion ended thousands of years ago… what you see here is what's left of the Crystal Gems; that includes Scolecite. Rose is gone." Garnet said lowering her gauntlets as Onyx slid to the floor; horror plastered on the cracked gem's face. Steven looked on as tears streamed down Onyx's face.  
"All those gems… Scolecite… No." Onyx stood, fists balled and her eye on individual members of the Crystal Gems. "I will not believe they're gone. I was gone! He brought me back! So… SO! You! You're coming with me!" Before anyone could react Onyx propelled herself to Steven, grabbed him and broke the giant window to his room as the gems franticly tried to keep up with his speed.

Daybreak broke as Steven screamed for Onyx to let him go.  
"Please! I want to go back home." Steven cried, trying to wriggle through Onyx's tight grip.  
"I'll let you go back home when you help me find Scole- AH!" Onyx screamed as white light shined through her gem; throwing she and Steven to the ground.  
"Ugh…" She huffed as she breathed in heavily. Steven wiped his face clean of the sand from the remote island they'd landed on. He looked at Onyx from behind before crawling to her.  
"Um… are you okay?" Steven stretched his hand cautiously to touch her back but before he could he heard crying. Steven walked over to the other side of Onyx and saw tears streaming down her eye.  
"Scolecite… I did this for you…" Onyx turned to Steven. "Oh Steven… I'm so sorry." Onyx sat up and looked towards the ocean.  
"Um, who's Scolecite?" Steven sat by Onyx and looked up at her. He quickly looked away as she stared down at him before turning back towards the ocean.  
"She was… my everything." Onyx stood up and walked slowly down the beach.

 _ **I came here for her,  
To fight in this long war,  
I came here for her,  
and in my heart bore love for her.  
My heart belongs to her.  
She was my everything,  
and giving my all to her  
I was meant for her…  
I belong to her…**_

Onyx morphed an image of a short woman, coming just below her chest, curvy like Amethyst with even longer hair, pure white skin, hair and clothes; most of which consisted of just a simple white dress and stockings; a milky white gem directly over her heart.

 _ **You said, "forever!"  
I said "okay"  
You said permanently!  
We will stay here  
I fought  
You fought  
For our place on this world.  
But I'm here and you're gone!  
This is all wrong!**_

Steven watched as the Onyx yelled at the image that stood stoically with a closed eyed smile. Tears fell from Onyx's cheeks again as she reached out to stroke the cheek of her lover before the image evaporated.

"Everything I touch turns to darkness. I shouldn't have taken it out on you. You look like you're just a baby… why would the gems want a human baby?" Onyx smiled at Steven who puffed his chest out and stood proudly.  
"I'm no baby! I'm a Steven." He said smiling "The gems never tell me anything. But, Rose is my mom."  
"Your mom? How… when? With whom? Why?" Onyx looked truly disgusted, a cartoonish upturned nose and twisted mouth in disgust.  
"Yeah, it's pretty hard to understand at first. But to put it short. My mom and I couldn't both exist so, she's a part of me." Steven raised his shirt to show Onyx his gem.  
"Rose… well Steven, if you ever want to know anything about our people I'll tell you. But for now I'll take you home. I probably won't see you after this." Onyx stood up and removed her eyepatch; revealing her still cracked gem.  
"I thought I healed you!" Steven's mouth was open in shock.  
"I am healed Steven. My gem is purposely cracked." Onyx put her eyepatch in her back pocket.  
"But… how?" Steven looked at his own gem.  
"During the war… I knew Scolecite would be fighting to protect the others. …I would be fighting to protect her… So… I broke my gem and embedded it into Scolecite so I'd always be able to find her in battle. But it made me more than I ever expected. Her pain is mine… my pain is hers. You humans call it a heart. I gave her a piece of what is mine." Onyx looked down before turning to Steven.  
"Everyone expected us to pick a side. We didn't have a choice. We never had a choice. You don't even know about your own kind! Let's go Steven, if you still want to go home after our fun we will. But for now, let's be bad." Onyx smiled a wicked smile. It reminded Steven of someone… it reminded him of Jasper.

 _ **Come on Steven!  
I've been trapped too long.  
Get rid of all that blues  
Let it fall  
It's time to rock and roll!**_

 _ **I've been trapped here.  
I've been locked here  
been reminiscing on what I could've had  
Done being locked here  
It's time I be bad!**_

 _ **No, pressure.  
No fuse  
Tell me what do I have to lose?**_

 _ **I'm done Steven  
Come on Steven  
Let's go be bad!**_


End file.
